Clutch call by Vitality prevents Rogue upset

While Team Vitality was expected to win their game against the struggling Rogue, the game itself provided plenty of surprises right down to the end. The underdogs took it to their opponents in the mid-game, and only a risky splitpush call netted Vitality the win.

A winning jungle matchup and a big advantage in the top and middle gave the favorites a big farm advantage in the first few minutes. However, it was Rogue who got the first blood, collapsing on Lucas "Cabochard " Simon-Meslet in the top lane in what turned into a 2:1 for the rookies as they tower dove Daniele “Jiizuke” di Mauro, who had come to help his top laner. Vitality maintained a small gold and objective lead throughout most of the game, using their strong solo laners to split-push across the map, yet Rogue would find kills to stay close, often via roams by jungler Mateusz “Kikis” Szkudlarek. The two teams’ different ways to play around the map defined the mid-game, and while Vitality's drakes gave them a better scaling as the late-game loomed, kill after kill saw Rogue chip at their opponents' lead.

A skirmish in the jungle ended in three kills for Rogue as Vitality appeared scattered, resulting in a baron going to the underdog team. Yet in the face of a five-man Rogue push mid, Jiizuke opted to splitpush, and while Rogue took the first inhibitor, he did not stop. It was a game of chicken, and the rookie squad blinked first, deciding to back and protect their base. It was that call that cost them the game, however, as Vitality sent their tanks to delay the recalls, while the top laner and bot laner teleported to the Rogue base and joined Jiizuke to end the game.

It was a heart-breaking loss for Rogue, who seemed to be doing everything right in the mid-game only to make a mistake in the last moment; still, many of their players showed up and another such game could have just as easily lead to a win. Yet apart from a good early game, Vitality made several tactical blunders that could well have resulted in a loss until they bet it all on Jiizuke’s splitpush. In the end, it came to a coin toss: while the decision to send their mid laner ultimately netted them the win, it was a risky call as an aggressive push by Rogue could well have led to a collapse of the Vitality defense and an embarrassing defeat. Sometimes, fortune does indeed favor the bold.